Sustainable soy remains key to UK pig production

While the UK pig sector is constantly exploring alternative protein sources, it is nowhere near being in a position yet to move away from imported soya entirely, according to National Pork Association chief executive Lizzie Wilson. Wilson stressed that the industry increasingly importing its soya from sustainable, deforestation-free sources, according to a news release from the organisation. Farmers’ union the Landworkers’ Alliance has joined forces with Sustain, Pasture for Life and UK grain and pulse pioneers Hodmedod to launch a report calling for the pig and poultry sectors to reduce global demand for soya to protect the planet’s last remaining rainforests. It sought to show how exploring alternatives to soya-based pig and poultry feeds, including home-grown peas and beans, co-products, by-products and food waste, could contribute significantly to this reduction in demand. However, it acknowledged that feeding livestock on home-grown proteins would mean reducing our poultry ...